Beautiful Breakdown
by jemx2
Summary: [Takes Place After Venus] After Manny's highly publicized drunken video encounter, a cruel prank causes her to have a breakdown in midst of the school. Will a certain someone who she's had a troubled history with step up and come to her rescue?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not claim any rights to Degrassi, the characters of the series, etc.

Author's Note: I wrote this this just after Venus had aired. It was my interpretation of how Craig could have helped Manny cope with the video tape incident.

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As Manny walked through the crowded halls of Degrassi, her arms linked with Emma's, she could not help but hear the constant whispers and snickers coming from all of the people around her. Try as she might, she could not ignore all the hurtful words they uttered.

"She's so easy."

"What a slut."

"Degrassi's favorite porn star."

Though only words they may have been, they cut through Manny like sharpened daggers . If Emma hadn't been beside her acting as her safe hold, her sole companion, she surely would have broken down in tears. As the two girls continued to walk through the halls, Manny kept her head hung low so as not to come face to face with anyone else. She did not let her eyes stray farther than the sight of her shoes, in fear that if she did, she would only be met by pointing fingers and insulting remarks. As the two girls rounded a corner, Emma let out a warning directed towards her friend.

"Manny, watch out…"

Manny stopped walking, narrowly avoiding colliding with another person. To her sheer embarrassment, when she looked up to see who that person was, her eyes were met by none other than Craig. Quickly, she looked away, all the shame she felt doubling inside of her. He had to have seen the tape of her drunken escapades. Everyone else had. How would he react to her? Would he laugh and make raunchy remarks as most of the other guys had done or would he be a source of comfort? Being as pessimistic as she was then, she only expected the worst.

"Manny…" Craig uttered. "How's it…"

But before he could let out another word, Manny pulled Emma along, walking as fast and as far away from Craig as she possibly could. He called after her, but Emma turned her head in his direction, giving him a look as if to say " Not now, Craig. She's too heartbroken to talk." With that one look, Craig retreated, hoping to catch up with Manny when she would be ready.

"Could the time be passing by any slower?" Manny thought to herself, as she sat in English class with Emma still by her side. She gazed at the clock, urging its hands to land at three. When it did, it would finally initiate the end of the school week. To Manny, that would mean two blissful days without having to endure the torment of her peers.

"Come on. Come on…" she whispered in desperation. Her eyes concentrated even harder on the ticking clock, as if trying to make it go faster, "Just a few more seconds… three….two…one."

At the sound of the bell, Manny quickly gathered all her belongings and shoved them into her bag. When she had finished, she impatiently waited for Emma to grab all of her things. Being the studious person she was, Emma made sure not to leave behind any important assignments. Manny wanted desperately to tell her to pick up the pace, but seeing as how Emma graciously had forgiven her and taken her into her arms after the incident, she couldn't bring herself to say anything. It would seem so unthankful.

When Emma was finally finished, Manny felt an overwhelming amount of relief. Together, they made their way towards the door, but just as they were about to step out of the room, Mrs. Kwan called after Emma.

"Emma?" she began, "Can I speak to you alone for a moment? I wanted to go over your last book report with you."

At Mrs. Kwan's request, Manny could not help but cringe. That would mean her having to walk through the halls alone. With a concerned look plastered across her face, Emma turned towards Manny.

"Are you going to be all right?" she questioned.  
"Ugh…s-sure. I'll be fine." Manny lied. With a nervous laugh, she added, "After all, I'm a big girl. I can make it through the big bad halls of Degrassi by myself." Probably doubting those words, Emma replied, "Look…I'll try to finish this up as soon as I can. I'll meet you at your locker, then we can walk home. We'll order some pizza and have a nice Friday night movie marathon. Just like old times. What do you say?" she ended with her usual sweet smile.  
"That sounds really nice." Manny said, smiling back. And with that, Emma disappeared through Mrs. Kwan's door.

Taking in a deep breath, Manny began walking towards her locker. As was expected, wolf whistles and vulgar remarks were thrown at her. Her grip hardened over her books as she tried her best not to cry. To the best of her abilities, she drowned out all the sounds of laughter around her. She was managing things pretty well, but once she arrived at her locker, she fell apart and became overwhelmed with tears.

There, written across her locker and covered with her x-rated pictures it quoted:

"I am going to be an actress. An academy award winning actress! And you can sell this for a million dollars, because I am going to be famous!"

Manny sunk down, knees close to her chest and her head pressed against her palms. Whether or not people were gawking at her, she did not care. All she knew was that, at that moment, she wished she could just disappear.

At the same time, Craig was walking towards the school entrance with Ellie and Marco by his side. As usual, the subject of discussion was their band, Downtown Sasquatch.

" El," Marco began, "with you as our new drummer, I dare say Downtown Sasquatch can reach higher potentials."  
" Thank you." added Ellie, giving a playful curtsy, "And I dare say we can sure as hell beat the rest of the competition in this year's Battle of the Bands."  
"That's why we've got to start rehearsals today," chimed in Craig.  
"Already?" Marco and Ellie whined simultaneously.  
"Yeah. I mean, last year when we won, I kinda screwed over our studio recording time. What with Ashley and everything… This year…this year, things needs to be different. "  
"Just forget about last year, Craig." said Ellie, "I mean, Ashley was, and is my best friend, but…" she paused, wondering whether to say it, "…but you deserve someone better."

With that, Marco glanced at Ellie with a knowing look on his face. He knew for quite some time about her developing crush on Craig, but he doubted whether Craig held any feelings back.

They continued to walk towards the front doors of Degrassi, but just as they turned a corner, Craig saw something that made him stop dead in his tracks. There, with her back against her locker sat Manny, crying into her hands. He wondered what could have made her act like that, but his question was soon answered when he glanced up at the graffiti on her locker. At that moment, he became filled with anger. He bound towards Manny, completely ignoring everything else around him.

"Wait!" called Ellie, as Craig walked away, "What about our band rehearsal?"  
"Never mind that!" he called back, " We'll just postpone it!"

Ellie sighed, watching as he walked off. She felt pity towards Manny, but she just wished that Craig hadn't gone after her, hoping to be her knight in shining armor. His actions could only mean one thing.

Noticing the sudden melancholy that took over Ellie, Marco asked "What's wrong?"  
"Nothing much," she replied quietly, " Just thinking that my little crush on Craig was a waste of time."

Craig knelt down beside Manny, putting his hand on her shoulder. With deep concern he asked her, "Manny, are you okay?" At the sound of his voice, she looked up, tears cascading down her flushed cheeks. But she did not answer. She only looked back down and covered her face with her hands. At the sight of her saddened expression, Craig felt the emotions inside of him double. He got back up on his feet and tore off the pictures on Manny's locker.

Clutching them in his hands, he yelled out, "Who did this?". When no one responded, he yelled out even louder, "WHO DID THIS!"

Still no one answered. In frustration, he threw the crumpled pictures onto the ground. Just then, Emma came walking by with Darcy at tow. Their attentions caught by the events unfolding before them, they ran towards Manny and knelt down beside her.

"Oh…Manny," mumbled Emma, nearly on the verge of tears herself, "Are you okay?"  
"What happened?" asked Darcy with a sympathetic tone in her voice.

Manny tried to answer them, but it was no use, being that her breath was shortened by her crying. Quickly, Emma and Darcy brought her to her feet. With her arms draped over her shoulders, Emma began leading Manny towards the front door. Darcy offered to stay behind and clean the locker.

As Emma and Manny made their way outside, Craig came running after them, hoping to be of assistance. When he offered to drive them home in his car, Emma was somewhat hesitant to say yes, but eventually, she decided that riding home would be a much easier task then walking home, especially with the state that Manny was in. Taking Manny's belonging from her hands, Craig led the two girls towards his car and held open the back door. When all was finished and everyone buckled tightly, Craig drove away from the school campus, a few onlookers looking at them as they made their getaway.

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This is going to be a relatively short story. Probably no more than 3 or 4 chapters. Reviews are more than welcomed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not claim any rights to Degrassi, the characters of the series, etc.

**Author's Note:** Thank you to those who reviewed my story. I really appreciated it. This was my very first attempt at writing a fanfiction, and it felt great to have suchpositive feedback.

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The ride to Emma's house was undoubtedly an awkward one. As the girls sat in the back seat, one trying to comfort the other, Craig couldn't help feeling excluded. He want to be there for Manny and tell her things would get better, but it didn't seem like he had the right. Their history had been a rocky one; far too broken and tattered to ever be mended again.

When they finally arrived, Emma assisted Manny into her basement bedroom. Acting as her usual motherly self, Emma found it best for Manny to take a rest. A little sleep would do her some good. Unsurprisingly, once she laid her head upon the pillow, she dozed of into a peaceful slumber. As Emma emerged through the basement doorway, she turned her attention towards Craig.

"Listen, Craig…thanks for your help. Manny really needed it."

"No problem." he answered back, "I only wish I could have done more."

"You did just enough." she added with a smile, "Here, I'll walk you to your car."

"A-actually, I thought I could stay here. You know, just in case you guys need any help."

"No. It's all right. I think we can manage."

"But I should, just in case anything dangerous happens."

"Like what?" scoffed Emma with a sarcastic tone, "We get sucked into the TV by an evil whirling vortex? It's all right Craig…we'll be just fi…"

But Craig stopped her short of her sentence. In an almost pleading tone he spoke, "Emma, please. J-just let me stay here."

A look of suspicion came over Emma, "Why do you want to stay so badly?"

"Honestly?" he asked. When she nodded as a reply, he answered, "I just want to be here for Manny."

"But why Craig?" Emma asked, as the two sat on the kitchen table. An hour had passed from their earlier conversation. After his incessant requests, Emma decided it would do no harm for him to stay, but she wouldn't let him without further looking into his reason for wanting to be there for Manny. "Why is it that you care all of a sudden? You and Manny got together and broke up, got together and broke up, got together and broke up over and over again. For a while now you and her have been doing pretty good, from what I can tell. You moved on…well, stayed…with Ash, and she moved on to JT and Spinner. She went through such a hard time trying to get over you, and trying to forget about the abortion…"

She briefly stopped at the sight of seeing Craig cringe at that painful word. Abortion.

"You left her when she needed you most." she continued solemnly, " You broke Manny's heart. You broke my best friend's heart. Why do you want to break it again?"

"I don't." Craig replied offensively.

"Well that's what it always leads to with the two of you. When Ashley comes back from England…"

"She's not coming back." he said quietly.

"She's not?…Is that why you've all of a sudden come back for Manny?" Emma's voice began to grow louder. "Because perfect little Ashley isn't coming back? Because you can't have your first pick! "

"She wasn't my first pick!" Craig yelled, rising from his seat.

"If she wasn't, then why did you go back to her! If you even remotely cared about Manny, you would have stayed with her!"

"I wanted to!" he answered back angrily. Craig began pacing back and forth. "I-I really wanted to, but I couldn't bring myself to…not even when she was my first choice."

"Please, Craig…" Emma pleaded, the volume of her voice becoming quieter, " Please explain this to me, because I really don't get it."

"Look…" he began, "When I first got caught in the whole me, Ashley, Manny thing…I really did not know who to choose. But then after a while, Manny gave me an ultimatum. She couldn't take all the lying…all the cheating. She didn't want to be involved in that anymore. It was either her, or Ashley. I couldn't choose, so… she stopped seeing me."

Emma stayed silent, desperate to hear the whole story.

"But for that short time I wasn't with her, I couldn't do anything. I just kept thinking about how I didn't have her anymore. How I couldn't choose, and how I lost her." He paused, as if trapped in a recollection, " Even when I still had Ash, I wasn't happy. When I'd see Manny, I did feel happy, but when I'd try to talk to her, she'd always try to ignore me. When she did talk to me this one time, I ended up making her cry. I couldn't stand to see her cry. I wanted to do anything to keep her from feeling hurt…cause I cared about her."

"But you didn't care enough to choose her." Emma said, in a judging tone.

"You're wrong. I did care. I cared enough, that I came to a decision that Manny was the most important thing to me. I did choose her. I told her. I told her it was her that I wanted to be with. Not Ashley."

"But then what was all of that drama during the Christmas pageant? If you already broke up with Ashley, then why did she and Manny dump you?"

"Because…I don't know. Because I was stupid. See…for Christmas, Ash gave me this guitar passed down from her grandpa, uncle… something like that. It was a vintage beauty. It played perfectly. But the thing is, she gave it to me just as I was about to break the news to her. When she gave me the guitar, I…I guess couldn't let go it. If I broke up with Ash right then, she'd take back the guitar. So I told myself I'd break up with her later on, so I'd get to keep it longer."

"What a gentleman." Emma scoffed.

"Just stop it." Craig said aggravated, "Do you want to hear the rest or what?" Emma sighed and gave a nod, "But obviously, things didn't go so well. Both of them found out that I'd lied. I lost the guitar…but more importantly, I lost Manny…again. For a while nothing happened, except for her hating my guts, but then she found out she was…she was pregnant, and with my kid. When she told me, at first I was a little scared. I mean, who wouldn't be? But…but then I realized it was okay. It was better than okay. We were gonna have a family. It was exciting for me and for Manny. I was gonna be a dad Emma. I was gonna be a dad!"

Emma couldn't help but give a small sympathetic smile at his enthusiasm.

"But then…she…decided to have…" Craig struggled on his words, "she decided to have an abo…abor… Well, you know. And I couldn't handle it."

" I remember." Emma spoke silently, with a vague sign of tears in her eyes.

"I was angry. Can you blame me? Afterwards, whenever I saw Manny, I just kept thinking about what we lost. After that, I couldn't see how we could ever be together. But after a while of being angry, I realized that what she did, she tried to do for our own good. I still think what she did wasn't the best way to go, but that's all she could do, I guess. We were teenagers. Hell, we still are! How could we manage to take care of a child? But I didn't see that. Not until it was too late. By then, she'd started going out with JT. I did the only thing I could do, and I went back with Ashley. Soon, she'd started going out with Spinner, but after he confessed about the prank on Rick, she wouldn't have anything o do with him. And just to let you know, all this time, I haven't stopped thinking about her. I wanted to be with her, but I was afraid she wouldn't take me back. Not after I had abandoned her."

"And that's why you want to be here for her now." Emma said, coming upon a revelation, "After she got the…you know, you didn't stay with her. You weren't there for her. Now that she's going though this problem, you want her to know that you're here."

"And that I still care about her."

Just then, the sound of footsteps were heard coming from the basement. With a blanket draped around her shoulders, Manny emerged, looking better than when they had arrived. Emma and Craig looked at her, hoping her spirits were in better shape. Just as Emma was about to ask her how she was, Manny quietly spoke up.

"Listen. Emma, Craig. Thanks for helping me out today. At school. Here. Everything. I really, really don't know what I would have done without you two. Plus Darcy of course. And Craig…" she directed her attention towards him, "Thanks. Thanks for standing up to me in the halls. I really appreciated it."

"It was no problem. No problem at all." he answered back.

For several moments, they stood silently, an awkward pause looming in the air. Emma, detecting the slight discomfort between them, decided to break the quiet that had befallen the room.

"So, Manny. Now that you're feeling better, are you still up for that Friday night movie marathon?"

"Sure," Manny said, with a sincere smile spread across her face. "I could really go for some upbeat movies right about now."

"And Craig could join us." Emma added, "Right Craig?"

"Ugh… sure, that is, if it's all right with you." he said, directing it towards Manny.

"Sure. I'd really like that." she smiled back.

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I hopedyou enjoyed this chapter.I'd really appreciate your feedback. Thanks!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I do not claim any rights to Degrassi, the characters of the series, etc.

**Author's Note:** I made a revision to this chapter's ending. I felt that the original ending seemed a little too abrupt, so I tweeked it somewhat.

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What had begun as a terrible day, soon turned happier and more enjoyable. In addition to the vast movie collection in the Nelson household, there were tons of sodas and junk food to keep Manny's mind off the events which had perspired at school. As she, Emma, and Craig jugged down bottle after bottle of Coca Cola and stuffed their faces full of sweets, they also occupied their time by watching classic 80's cinema. The two girls swooned at the sight of Ponyboy, Dally, and Johnny as they watched The Outsiders, and when Ferris Beuller started to twist and shout in the Chicago streets, Craig decided to join in as well.

For quite some time, they continued on with their movie marathon, hyped up on sugar and full of energy, but as the sky darkened and the hours passed by, they slowly grew tired and weary. The first to fall victim to the sandman's spell was Emma. She fell asleep huddled in the armchair, with her hair disheveled and a blanket covering her body.

Though tempted by the alluring prospect of slumber, Craig and Manny were still awake. Manny laid on the couch, her body turned sideways towards the television, while Craig sat comfortably on the floor in front of her. The lights were turned off and the living room was almost completely silent. The only sound came from Patrick Swayze uttering the immortal line of "Nobody puts baby in the corner", as the remaining two watched Dirty Dancing. Their eyes were fixed upon the television as the music swelled and Jennifer Gray's character was lifted into the air by her love interest/ dance partner.

Certainly Manny appreciated the romantic moment of that scene, being that she was quite a romantic herself. So, as was expected by Craig, she let out an audible swooning sort of sigh. As best as he could, Craig tried to stifle the chuckle which was gradually arising from within him, but within only a few seconds, a laugh emerged from his lips. Manny, reacting towards Craig response, furrowed her eyebrows and asked, "What's so funny?"

With still a few chuckles escaping from him, Craig answered, "It's… It's nothing. Just, it's so like you to act like that to this sort of stuff."

Feeling somewhat offended, she retorted, "And why, may I ask, is that such a bad thing?"

"It's not." Craig told her. With a sideways smile still remaining on his lips, he turned his head up towards Manny and said, "Coming from you, it's pretty predictable, but… in a good way."

"Oh. 'In a good way'…" she repeated, an appreciative expression gradually appearing on her face. With a cute ear to ear grin, reminiscent of those she made from her younger, more innocent years, she looked at Craig and muttered sweetly, "Thanks."

"Don't mention it." he answered, looking right back at her. Suddenly, Craig became extremely aware of how close they were to one another. He gazed at her, completely breathless. Her lips, which previously formed a wide smile, subsided to a small, subtle smirk. Her soft short hair gracefully fell onto her shoulders. And then her eyes… even in the dark their intensity couldn't be masked. He loved her. He always loved her. And in one quick sweeping motion, Craig threw out all his inhibitions. Not caring about what the outcome would be, he cupped Manny's cheeks with his hands… and he kissed her. It was a short sweet kiss, both passionate and gentle.

When their lips finally parted, neither one of them said a word. There was an evident trace of surprise in Manny's facial expression. Their eyes remained locked on one another, waiting to see which of them would be the first to break the silence. But ultimately, it was neither Craig nor Manny. Emma had just then woken up, slowly wrestling herself free from the blanket which was wrapped around her. Suddenly remembering that Emma had also been in the room, Manny was quick to avert her eyes, looking awkwardly at anything else but Craig.

Completely unaware of what had just happened, Emma let out a yawn, and said, " It's getting pretty late, you guys. I'm just gonna head off to bed." As she drowsily made her towards her bedroom, Craig called after, with his eyes still fixed on Manny, "Yeah… I probably should get going too."

Slowly he rose from his spot, taking one last look at Manny. She remained in the same position and made no move as to escort Craig to his car. But that was all right, he thought to himself. He kissed her, and if the case was that she didn't share his feelings, he did not regret what he had done. Craig walked through the Nelson's front door and made his way towards his car. He jingled the cars keys with his fingers and stared up at the sky, when behind him Manny's voice called out, "Craig!"

He turned around, seeing Manny's silhouette at the doorway. She ran towards him, stopping just mere inches from his body. In silence, she looked up at him, nervously biting her lip. And then, just as Craig had done, she gently cupped his cheeks with her hands… and she kissed him. It was a short sweet kiss, both passionate and gentle.

"Thank you," she whispered breathlessly, her eyes shimmering with tears that threatened to fall, " You didn't have be here. You didn't have an obligation…"

"But I did," Craig answered back, wiping a tear as it fell from Manny's cheek, " You might not think so, but I did. Manny… whatever happens, I'll be here for you."

"Well, I'm glad…" Manny said, sweetly smiling up at him, "It makes me feel better. Like you're my protector." And with that, Craig pull her into his arms, embracing her more lovingly than he ever had before.

-The End-

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I always loved that "protector" line. After watching "Weddings, Parties, Anything", I decided it would make a cute addition to the story. Anyways, thanks again for reading my fanfic. I hope you enjoyed it. And again, I'd appreciate a review. Thanks.


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